Example Grants

The Wiltshire Historic Churches Trust supports churches in Wiltshire through grants to enable essential repairs and community enhancements

The Trust made grants to 34 churches in 2015, 30 churches in 2016 and 37 churches in 2017. Awards are listed on separate pages

Examples of repair and community enhancement projects that have been supported by the Trust are shown below.

Repairs

Scaffolding and safety screens in 2012

St Bartholomew’s Church 2017

The restoration of the spire and tower of St Bartholomew’s Church in Corsham. This requirement for major project was identified in the Quinquennial Inspection report in 2005 and completed in 2012. The work included the repointing of the spire and its windows, the restoration of tower parapets and pinacles and the replacement of the bell tower flooring and access. Fundraising ran over a six year period and included two grants from the Trust.

St Andrew Roof Covering

The re-roofing of St Andrew’s Church in Castle Combe was completed in 2016. This repair work was the first and critical part of an ongoing large-scale project to restore the church and add new community facilities for the comfort of the congregation and visitors. The Trust contributed a £2,500 grant and Trustees recommended a NCT Partnership Grant of a further £2,500. The Knight’s Chapel, with the tomb of the Norman crusader, Sir Walter de Dunstanville, will also be conserved within this complex project which started in 2017. The Trust has granted £2,500 towards the restoration of the medieveal screen in the Knight’s Chapel.

St Andrew Newton Toney repaired spire

Repairs to the spire of St Andrew’s Church in Newton Toney were completed in 2017.
The cedar shingles had deteriorated on one side and the local Jackdaw population had made a number of holes. This spire had last been covered in 1963 at a cost of £485. In 2017 the re-covering of the spire with cedar shingles, plus work on the vestry and chancel roofs, cost £15,850. The majority of church funding came from the Newton Toney Flower Festivals over six years and other events such as the Newton Toney fete. The Wiltshire Historic Churches Trust granted £2,000 in June 2017. A Faculty was granted for the works in September 2017 and the works commenced on 1 October 2017 and were completed in December 2017.

Repairs to the spire of Christ Church, Shaw were completed in July 2018. The work included the scaffolding of the spire and tower and a complete replacement of rotting wooden shingles with new shingles. The Trust granted £4,000 and recommended a NCT Partnership Grant of £5,000.

Repairs to the vestry walls and floors in St John’s Church, West Ashton

The replacement of a historic stained glass window in St Christopher, Ditteridge was completed in June 2018.

Replacements and Safety

A new heating boiler system for St Michael and All Angels in Melsham was opened on 20th January 2018

New boiler – St Margaret, Chilmark

New heating for St Margaret of Antioch, Chilmark in early 2018 to remove the old (1982) Trianco Redfyre boiler and replace it with a more energy-efficient Grant Vortex VTXBH 5870 boiler.

The boiler room at Chilmark Church is below ground, down a flight of stone steps covered by a small extension with an outside door. The new and the old boiler each weighed over 300kg. The new boiler was lowered over the steps on a makeshift wooden slide using ropes. The old boiler, condemned in 2017, had to be cut in two before it could safely be lifted out. Fitting the new steel flue liner through the masonry behind the boiler and into the existing chimney proved to be the most difficult and time-consuming part of the installation work, which began on 15th January and took three weeks.

St George, Fovant had serious electrical safety risks. The Trust granted £2,500 towards the renewal of the electrical supply system and this in turn enabled a complete modernisation of the church lighting system.

Enhancements

The provision of kitchenettes/serveries and toilets in Christ Church in Shaw, Holy Trinity in Dilton Marsh, St Peter in Great Cheverell and Holy Cross in Seend are good examples of the significant improvement of the quality of life for congregations that have been supported by the Trust. There are may other examples of tasteful designs and purpose-built facilities that have been financially supported by the Trust and which significantly benefit congregations.

Christ Church in Shaw – new toilet and refreshment facilities installed in the rear of the church and vestry